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Dayton gets an earful on Vikings stadium from fairgoers

At the State Fair Thursday, Gov. Mark Dayton was lobbied by several people about a new stadium for the Minnesota Vikings.

The Vikings and Ramsey County have an agreement to build a new stadium in Arden Hills, but Dayton and Republican lawmakers say it still needs some work. Several fairgoers told Dayton a new stadium will keep the Vikings in Minnesota.

Dayton said he is waiting for a analysis by the Metropolitan Council and the Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission to see if the plan is viable.

"We need a project first and we need the financing to be agreed upon and I insist that the state's part of it be assured in terms of the revenue stream that's not there yet," he said. "There's a lot more planning to do to make it a true people's stadium and if it comes together and is timely and we think there's support in the Legislature."

Jan Nye of Minneapolis said she told Dayton that she didn't want any public money going to the stadium.

"Its a private business and I don't think we should be paying for billionaires' stadiums any more. We can't really afford it," she said.